


Leah

by violasarecool



Category: Mass Effect Trilogy
Genre: F/M, Multi, Names, Polyamory, background garrus/shep
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-06
Updated: 2018-08-06
Packaged: 2019-06-22 15:23:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 373
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15584868
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/violasarecool/pseuds/violasarecool
Summary: brynn's still getting used to this poly situation (but in some ways it's easier than she thought)





	Leah

"Leah."

"Huh?" Kaidan glanced up absently from his reading. 

"My middle name," Brynn said. "It's Leah."

"Oh. That's a pretty name," Kaidan said, staring at her for a moment with a slight smile. "Mine's Scott?"

"Okay, I can see that. Suits you."

"Thanks..." Kaidan tipped his head slightly, eyebrows low in confusion. "Is there, uh. A reason we're talking about middle names?"

"Well, I told Garrus my middle name yesterday..." Brynn said with a shrug. "I just felt like I should tell you too."

Kaidan gave a low breathy laugh, glanced up at her with a smile. "Brynn. You don't have to tell me everything you tell Garrus. It's okay."

"I wasn't—I wanted to," Brynn said, eyes narrowing.

"Okay," Kaidan said slowly, "and I'm not saying I'm not happy to know your middle name, I just don't want you to feel like you're... keeping secrets, or something, if you tell him things you don't tell me."

"Kaidan..." Brynn said, making a face at him, and he smiled.

"I know," he said. "I just... I know I've put a lot of emphasis on honesty, and keeping me in the loop, especially after—" he winced, visibly hesitating, "—after, uh, everything that's happened." Brynn shot him an awkward smile, reached over to cover his hand with hers. "This isn't like that."

"I know," Brynn said.

He was quiet for a moment; just when Brynn thought he was going to go back to reading, he added: "I mean, I tell my mom things I don't tell my dad, you know? That's just how relationships work."

"Yeah." Brynn nodded. Like her mom and dad—doing the rounds with her mom; scattered emails; late-night conversations with her dad, no matter how far their postings took them— _could we work like that?_

They subsided into comfortable silence, Kaidan's gaze falling back to his datapad. Only the faint sounds of vehicles outside broke into her hearing, but Brynn barely registered them, brain caught on their brief conversation—hardly even a conversation, really. Shorthand in a dossier of mission briefings and arguments and late-night whispers. "You really are okay with this," Brynn murmured, voice low with wonder.

Kaidan's eyes met hers, mouth tugging up into a fond smile. "Yeah. I am."


End file.
